How Does Magnetism Work?
Magnetism is caused by the motion of electrical charges.
All substances are made up of tiny particles known as atoms, which have even smaller particles that carry electrical charges, called electrons. In some substances—like iron, cobalt, and nickel—these electrons are mostly spinning in the same direction in relation to their atoms. This makes these kinds of substances possible magnets, although they won’t be able to attract other magnets yet.
Iron, cobalt, and nickel are ferromagnetic substances. Ferromagnetism is the strongest type of magnetism, and the one you’re most likely to encounter when you’re dealing with magnets.
When magnetic substances are exposed to magnetic fields, they become magnetized.
If a magnetic substance comes into contact with a strong magnet, its electrons will align along two poles—the north pole which is attracted to south poles, and the south pole, which is attracted to north poles. Substances like iron, cobalt, or nickel then become permanent magnets.
A magnetized substance needs to be exposed to a strong magnet to become a magnet itself because of how its electrons are oriented.
Although the electrons in a magnetic substance are spinning in the same direction in relation to their atoms, these electrons need to spin in the same direction in relation to the other atoms in the substance too.
Magnetic fields are also produced by electric currents, which means that you don’t necessarily need another magnet to magnetize a substance.
How Does Magnetism Work
Exposure to another strong magnetic field can weaken a magnet. This method is usually carried out by devices that produce an alternating electrical current. These devices make a strong magnetic field in the opposite direction of the magnet that you’re trying to demagnetize, thus changing the orientation of the electrons in the weaker magnet. As the weaker magnet’s electrons realign to match the stronger magnetic field, it loses its original magnetism.
As it turns out, there are a few ways to make a magnet less strong, and we’re here to walk you through all of them. We’ll give you the full rundown on how demagnetization works, and all the ways to demagnetize metal in this complete guide.
Magnet fields are formed when the electrons (small particles that contain electric charges) in a substance are oriented towards a north and a south pole. By changing how the electrons align, magnets can become less strong or almost demagnetized altogether. This process is called degaussing.
12mm x 1mm Strong Thin Disc NdFeB Magnet N45 Nickel
8mm x 1mm Strong Disc NdFeB Magnet N45 Nickel
8mm x 1.5mm Disc NdFeB Permanent Magnet N45 Nickel
60mm x 10mm Disc NdFeB Super Strong Magnet N45 Ni
35mm x 5mm Rare Earth Disc NdFeB Magnet N42 Ni
70mm x 15mm Disc NdFeB Supermagnet N45 Nickel
60mm x 5mm Rare Earth Disc NdFeB Magnet N40 Ni
12mm x 2mm Super Strong Disc Magnet NdFeB N45 Nickel
10mm x 1mm Rare Earth Sintered NdFeB Disc Magnet N35 Ni
8mm x 3mm Strong NdFeB Disc Magnet N45 Nickel
70mm x 40mm Large NdFeB Magnet Disc Round N40 Nickel
